Jupiter in Virgo 2015-2016 – A Year of Using Imagination to Craft Useful Forms

by Robert Wilkinson

Today we take an in-depth new look at the qualities of Jupiter in Virgo, since we can use them to great benefit during the next 12 months.

Jupiter enters Virgo for the first time since Sept 2003-04 on August 11, 4:13 am PDT, 12:13 pm Greenwich (BST). Here the planet of expansion and new openings to wider views and greater truths finds expression in all things involving practical service, types of work where we learn and teach, heal or are healed, or find a more effective self-refinement.

Jupiter only gets to 23 Virgo before going stationary retrograde on January 7-8. After that it retrogrades back to 14 Virgo, where it goes stationary direct in early May 2016. From there Jupiter rockets forward through the entire sign of Virgo until it enters Libra on Sept 8-9, 2016. So actually Jupiter has a long stay in Virgo of slightly over a year (unlike Jupiter in Aries which went less than 3 months during Summer 2010 and 5 months in 2011).

So what’s the big deal about Jupiter entering Virgo? First, let's revisit Jupiter's nature. Jupiter rules 2 signs. In other words, Jupiter finds its “home” in two signs, those being Sagittarius and Pisces. Those two signs offer us a glimpse of Jupiter's nature. We can learn a lot by examining how Jupiter functions in those two signs.

Jupiter was in Pisces from January 17-18 through early June 2010, and revisited that sign from early September through mid-January 2011. In Pisces, the water quality is emphasized, just as the fire quality was shown to us back in 2007 when it was in Sag and during the months in 2010 and 2011 when Jupiter was in Aries.

Being a combination of Sagittarius and Pisces, Jupiter rules "the open sky" as well as "the vast depth." Jupiter symbolizes ever-expanding forms of Higher Truth as well as deep feelings we share with all other humans throughout time.

So Jupiter is both Fire and Water, and Mutable by nature. In Fiery Aries, Jupiter was in its element, in a sign that takes the initiative in embracing the new. In Aries the expansive principle flames on in dynamic ways, opening new doors after closing the old ones in Pisces.

While it no doubt benefited from the Earth practicality when it was in Taurus from June 2011-12, and expanded its view in Gemini from June 2012-2013, it again found itself in the friendly Water element of Cancer from late June 2013 through July 2014. This past year Jupiter has been in the Fire sign of Leo, another element harmonious to its nature with the added benefit of the steadiness of being in a Fixed sign. The past year Jupiter has been focused through a process of steady heart expression and creative action.

It is now going to occupy Virgo for a year. We can begin by contemplating that Virgo is the 7th sign from Pisces, and the 10th sign from Sagittarius. Thus Jupiter in Virgo externalizes whatever began when Jupiter was in Pisces and was made concrete in Aries, and comes to a flowering fulfillment based in whatever was set into motion when Jupiter was in Sagittarius.

Because Virgo is a sign that opposes its rulership of Pisces, it is said to be in "exile" because Jupiter's expansive nature is the opposite of Virgo's qualities of narrowing the focus and dealing with details. Still, it represents the natural "far point" of Jupiter's natural cycle that begins when it moves through Pisces, and so is a natural time of correction of those energies as they come to the surface in practical works.

Virgo symbolizes the natural expression that comes forth after the initial Fire of Aries starts a process that is secured in Taurus, explored in Gemini, and anchored in personal feelings in Cancer. Leo began the second set of “4 elements in motion,” but in signs of interactivity with others.

What begins in Leo finds significant form and function in Virgo, comes to see a greater ideal in Libra, and grounds and focuses the magnetism in Scorpio. In Virgo, Jupiter’s naturally expansive expression takes the confidence and dramatic forms of expression learned in Leo and gives it practical significance, whether by refining what is or adjusting to a more open view of the practical possibilities of using that energy.

While Jupiter was in Cancer, we learned through sincerity, expressions of caring and sympathy, family and needs. Leo steadied that insecurity and sensitivity, and turned it to more natural and spontaneous expressions. Leo’s steadiness turns the movable energy of Cancer into more playful and creative expression. We can now ground that creativity in ways that are useful to us, and open more workable futures.

This sign likes to find more perfect forms of expression, product, and process, and brings a utilitarian atmosphere to whatever it touches. Virgo’s practicality and humility is the natural reaction to Leo’s bombast, dramatics, and tendency to focus too much on self-image and not enough on the usefulness of those forms of self-expression.

So while Jupiter in Leo steadied what began with Jupiter in Cancer, Jupiter in Virgo can help us refine those truths, visions, and expansive forms, grounding them in something that works in small practical ways to open our future. Jupiter in Virgo finds opportunity in the small details in any given thing, and through attention to detail and each step of any process keeps the vision moving forward.

Jupiter in Virgo should bring us confidence in the life areas where we have Virgo in our chart. Jupiter in Virgo can be too fussy and focused in ways that are too narrow or critical for its expansive nature, but also gives us the humility to know that perfection is a process and not a static picture. It should be a very active time where we free ourselves from situations that don’t work, or work imprecisely, or keep us trapped in too narrow of a perspective.

Grant Lewi, in his masterwork "Astrology For The Millions," says Jupiter in Virgo opens opportunities “in small beginnings,” where we focus on “the little things” and small details in things and do each step until we see we’ve accomplished something. He says this position gives “care, caution, and routine perfection of details,” often resulting in people backing the effort since “spectacular or risky ventures” are not favored. He states Jupiter in Virgo is favorable for “studious cultivation” of that which brings security and material well-being.

Marc Edmund Jones, in his masterwork "Astrology: How and Why It Works," says Jupiter in Virgo "indicates the development of a consciousness which is characteristically self-exploiting, and generous in its response to human relations.” It is motivated by “its inexhaustible capacity for everyday associations,” and is “interested in making the world a more comfortable place, and (its) welfare demands the fullest chance for working with others.”

During this year of Jupiter in Virgo, we will all learn about Virgo things and find opportunity in all things related to that sign. As it moves through early Virgo in August and September, it will sesquisquare Uranus and oppose Neptune. In October when it occupies mid-Virgo, it will binovile Saturn and biquintile Uranus, and then it will trine Pluto and quincunx Uranus.

Jupiter opposition Neptune and trine Pluto is a very powerful configuration that will lead some deeper into an illusion before they hit bottom and see clearly, while others will see a bigger picture, a greater personal effectiveness within a larger context, and set practical seeds into motion that will yield great material benefits in the first half of 2016. This will also show us that the emotional intelligence we began to cultivate in the Summer of 2013 will help us nurture what we need to, or protect what needs protecting, or gather what we need to secure a line of supply.

Don’t yield to drifting, or too narrow of a view or aspiration, and when most inclined to worry in expanding ways, stop worrying about things that can’t be solved by your worrying. See how each detail fits into a bigger picture, and don’t try to push the river. Take care of each step of the process, but refuse to get caught in nit-picking or needless criticisms. Remember that sometimes too much fussing over something can pick it apart rather than make it better.

Those who embrace the energy of Jupiter in Virgo will find a constantly shifting focus of what to refine or correct or make more perfect. Many will find a more practical spiritual discipleship or form of serving a higher Truth. This is a time to work with diligence, taking care of every detail while remembering that only G*d is perfect, and the best we can do is strive the best we’re able.

I have found that in my quest for perfection, I have to remember that process involves being perfectly human, with all that I do not know and probably never will, as well as accepting what I cannot change. Jupiter takes the courage of Leo and translates that into the Virgo humility and surrender to the Serenity Prayer applied to every life situation.

During its stay in Virgo, Jupiter, the expansive principle, will be in very favorable trine with Pluto, showing that whatever has been purified and reduced to healthy seed form by Pluto in Capricorn will be stabilized or harmonized in appropriate ways. Jupiter's relationship to Saturn will be narrow and not in any exact aspect through January except the binovile of Sept-Oct. After that Jupiter slows and Saturn speeds up, so they never quite becomes a quintile before Jupiter goes retrograde in January.

By February 2016, Jupiter begins to make a square to Saturn that becomes partile (exact) from early March through early June. This will be a challenging time, where too much Saturn will squash Jupiter’s promise, or too much Jupiter will disrupt Saturn’s discipline. These two heavyweights in square will prove difficult for those people and nations with planets in the middle degrees of Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

However, since Saturn will be in Sagittarius (a sign that Jupiter rules), we can expect many things promised by the last Jupiter in Sagittarius will crystallize into useful forms. And with Jupiter trine Pluto, we should be able to see clearly to the core of things, and be efficient in sprouting those seeds that will express through the Saturn square.

Overall that square will indicate that either the problem or the solution can be found by applying positive Pisces and/or Gemini energy. When the inner planets transit Pisces in March and oppose Jupiter and square Saturn, use good Gemini energy to integrate in frictional circumstances. When the inner planets transit Gemini in June and oppose Saturn and square Jupiter, use the Pisces skills and virtues cultivated in March to integrate and/or antidote problems.

That square challenges all of us to a new form of creative expression and a justification for accomplishing a cherished ideal so that we can hold the line through all possible discouragement. We must all find ways to "make success worth its price," get a broader imagination and/or truth, and find structured ways to make a promise become concrete without letting rules and pessimism be a wet blanket to our dreams and ideals.

This square will challenge everyone to stay as optimistic as is practically possible, overcoming any tendencies to get frustrated by the pace. Don’t let unnecessary rules and restrictions limit your ability to respond to the needs of the moment, and find ways to bring values and ambitions into alignment.

With Jupiter ruling Saturn, and Jupiter in an Earth sign that favors Saturn’s practicality, even after delays things should still work out just fine over the long run. The square will be followed by a Jupiter binovile Saturn in July 2016, favoring long wave spiritual realization, followed by the gifts and high specialization of Jupiter quintile Saturn in late August and early September 2016.

Because of the span where Jupiter will be retrograde in Virgo, October 2015 will introduce us to the themes of March through June 2016, and November and December 2015 will introduce us to the themes of January-March 2016 and June-September 2016. So we’ll get Jupiter in the first half of Virgo in August, September, and October 2015, and the second half of Virgo from October 2015 through April 2016. It’s back in the first half of Virgo from April through June 2016, after which it finishes its transit of the second half of Virgo before slipping into Libra in September 2016.

Obviously, all the lessons I've discussed so far are playing out in the house(s) that transiting Jupiter is moving through in our charts. This is a time when the deeper feelings and connectedness with All-That-Is that we learned from Jupiter in Cancer that were opened up in an expanded authentic self-expression while Jupiter occupied Leo will be crafted through work and attention to detail into a practical plan to improve our lives.

By examining the life areas of each house, we can see the progressive lessons Jupiter teaches us on a year-to-year basis. Since it takes about 11-12 years to make an entire circuit through all the signs, we can learn how the expansions and openings that happened when it crossed our Ascendant, Sun, or planets are related to what we learned in subsequent year periods about those life qualities.

It's also a time when the Virgo energies can "teach" our natal Jupiter more about practical opportunities and what needs refining, regardless of what sign our natal Jupiter is in. Our natal Jupiter in its sign shows us where we naturally learn and embrace various kinds of "quests." Jupiter transits show us how we relate to our natural openness to a greater truth or future.

Regardless of how we're living the adventure of our life, Jupiter in Virgo shows us how that quest or adventure is related to our willingness to work, humbly and with intense attention, in forms of practical service. It can renew our sense of practical discipleship and service to a greater Truth, Goodness, and Beauty. This prepares us to expand into more perfect forms of relationship and archetypal roles that will come forth when Jupiter is in Libra.

© Copyright 2015 Robert Wilkinson

Comments

[Starbright]

Hi Robert,

Jupiter will be transiting my 10th house Virgo where it will be a part of a stellium come early October. I am hopping this translates into a new job opportunity or at least a new boss. All this is occuring as Saturn will be conjuncting my Ascendent. Drama anyone?

[ThanQ]

Starbright:
Yes. High drama! Mostly being drummed up by an ugly bigot of a boss. Been going on since Aug. of 2013. (My Sun@3 Pi; Moon conj Saturn@12-13 Can.)

Oh yeah, I'm a peace loving librarian. However, I seem to be attracting the attentions of highly unstable women these days, which has been forcing me to come to terms with my own power to uplift as well as to dismantle.

[ThanQ]

Thanks for the heads up, Robert.

Many lines in this article are pure poetry... "Virgo’s practicality...is the natural reaction to Leo’s bombast[ic], dramatics," I may just turn that into a song lyric (-:

Then there's the theme of HUMILITY, which seems to be dreadfully lacking in our evolved 1st world societies of late...

Peace.

[Starbright]

Oh, my, Robert. You are truly amazing. Yes it was a bigoted boss and YES since 2013. I am learning to use my renewed power and confidence. My dismantling comes in the form of a new boss next month...although a new job would have been better

[Mina]

Dear Robert,

Thank you for this insightful article, I've been following Jupiter since 2003 although my Jupiter Return last happened around 2008 but l'm curious when you described the t-square and using the positive polarity,
l someone already have luminaries in Gemini and Pisces needless to say Pisces is pretty much distorted by Neptune how can overcome mutable cross?
How l can be a help to my Gemini Sun friend with Pisces Moon? He has the famous aspect of 60's Pluto/Uranus opposite Saturn as well. I remember when Uranus transit Pisces and Saturn in Virgo he almost lost it. Hope Jupiter and Neptune is different.